traditional Andalucian cottage old Spanish cortijo Al-Andaluz style private swimming pool spring flowers Andalucian white village natural springs
Country Holidays in Spain
Al-Queria cottage in the Andalusian countryside for rent to a couple a relaxing and peaceful holiday for a couple, a pretty cottage with a private swimming pool in the beautiful countryside of Andalucia, Spain
comfortable, high quality, self-catering accommodation to rent in a child free location just over an hour from Malaga airport and near to Granada, Cordoba and Antequera for sightseeing

Photo gallery of a country cottage holiday in Andalucia, inland Spain

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the local area
the local culture
sightseeing

all of the photographs on our site (bar one) have been taken by us with a standard, compact camera....
 

The local area

 

Andalucian man washing at the natural springs
Cheerful local at Fuentes de Cesna

Arroyo Morales, Algarinejo
Arroyo Morales, Algarinejo

   

village  square, Algarinejo
Algarinejo village square, Plaza de Espana

Buy seasonal produce at Algarinejo market
Fresh fruit and vegetables at Algarinejo market

   

Olive trees cloak the hillsides
Hills and valleys covered in olive trees with breathtaking views

Spring time brings wild flowers
Spring wild flowers cloak the hillsides

   

Lake Iznajar
Lake Iznajar, Andalucia, Spain

Fabulous views at Lake Iznajar, Andalucia
Iznajar Lake, Iznajar, Spain
 

The local culture

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Andalucia Day flamenco in Ruté
Flamenco dancing in Rute on Andalucia Day
flamenco in minature
Everyone gets to dress up on "Viva la Morenita" fiesta
   
Weird fiesta outfit
Some Spanish people take fiestas seriously, others not so much....

Flamenco dancer
Flamenco "Sevillano" in Rute

   
Singing in the street
Procession de las Flores, Rute
the fiesta is over for these little people...
The end of the fiesta, a tiring day in Priego de Cordoba
 

Sightseeing

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"Lion Fountain" at Alhambra Palace, Granada

Couple (us!) enjoying the view at Alhambra Palace, Granada
   

Mezquita mosque, Cordoba

Traditional Cordoba patio
   

Alcazar gardens, Cordoba

Cordoba street during Los Patios week
Iznajar lake at the end of another perfect day.....
Sunset over Lake Iznajar

Here are a few photos taken by us over the years which should give you a flavour of the area around Al-Queria cottage, the traditions and fiestas of the local people.

We have also included our photos of the impressive monuments and buildings in the nearby cities which can only really be done justice by a sightseeing visit.

As stunning as the great heritage sites are, there are some equally interesting local sights and buildings which reflect the history of this region.

Andalus barrios which really show how the old settlements were constructed on Arabic lines with narrow, twisting streets giving plenty of shade and defence opportunities, hill forts and castles which controlled the surrounding land and strategic points, ermitas and churches to support the local people in their faith which still provides a structure to today's life.

Most villages have an "hermandad" or brotherhood, attached to the church and these brotherhoods not only organise the many religious processions and fiestas but also give help and support to the local people.

Some of the fiestas are grand affairs which involve the whole town or village whilst others are just very local to the chapel or church and celebrated in a quieter way.

Ferias or fairs, are held at various times of the year, usually in support of a saint's day and these can be very lively with music and sideshows going on until the early hours. The locals have centuries of practice at staying up to enjoy the fairs although newcomers have to stretch their stamina levels just to keep up....

The countryside surrounding Al-Queria cottage is given over almost exclusively to olive farming. These tough trees need little water, can grow in the poorest of soil, survive storms, snow, frosts and extreme heat and still give steadilty increasing crops over their considerable lifespan.

As most of the land here is mountainous, the trees grow in steep plantations and are tended by hand or tractors. The crop is picked between December and March and taken to the olive sorting stations, mills or co-operatives where it is processed into the best olive oil. In recent years, many mills and co-operatives have attained "Denominacion de Origen" for their oils, some of which are the finest in the world.

Rural life around Al-Queria cottage is reliant on olive farming and most people are either full-time farmers or have other jobs and just tend their olive trees at the weekend.

Our own olive trees are looked after by a local couple, Domingo and Loli, who are full-time farmers and still care for our land in the traditional way, by hand.

They put in a tremendous amount of hard work in return for the annual crop and we get some olive oil and a lot of firewood in exchange.

This is a good deal for us as it keeps our land tended properly, the trees producing their crop, two of our neighbours provided with a bit of extra income and it allows us a lot more time to look after our guests...

We even get to sit out in the sunshine occasionally....

Before we started living and working at the farm, we lived in a tiny house in the the old part of Ruté, a pueblo about 30 minutes drive away.

Our neighbours were extremely friendly and welcomed us without reservation. Some of their habits and ways amused us at first but after a while we came to understand just why local life followed the pattern that that it did.

Hot summer nights meant that you didn't go to bed but stayed up until 3:00am talking in the street, just to keep cool.

The following morning you would get up at 7:00am and start your day before it got too hot.

At 2:00pm it was too hot to work so you stopped for lunch for two or three hours and then, when the sun was casting longer shadows, you finished your day's work up until about 9:00pm.

The summertime habits are carried over into the cooler months except that much more manual work is carried out as it physically more feasable.

In the mornings, the street was always alive with women cleaning and sweeping outside their front doors and we came to realise that this was not necessarily being "house proud" but rather an opportunity to gossip with the neighbours and anyone else that passed by.

Traditionally, local people get up, go to work and then stop for breakfast at about 10:30am. Lunch is from 2:00pm onwards and a later meal is taken at about 10:00pm. The pattern seems very logical as it allows one to digest each meal and then to "work it off".

The renowned Spanish lifestyle as portrayed by outsiders is in fact very hard working but with a twist...

The family is interwoven into Spanish life so that many working people return home to their families for lunch, they stay up with their children at night and visit relatives houses on an almost daily basis.

One of the pleasures of living here is to have lunch at a restaurant on a Sunday and observe the huge family gatherings which include several generations all at one table, all talking, all eating and all enjoying their own company.

All we can say is, "come and see it all for yourself"

Steve & Wendy